[http://www.google.com/transit?ll=47.562723,-122.146319&spn=0.407366,0.360521 Google Transit Planner for Seattle]. Enter two locations and get the directions using transit. The Google transit planner has been known [http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/soundoff/comment.asp?articleID=286592 to send folks all over town], so you might want to use the [http://tripplanner.metrokc.gov/cgi-bin/itin_page.pl?resptype=U Metro Trip planner] instead.

[http://www.google.com/transit?ll=47.562723,-122.146319&spn=0.407366,0.360521 Google Transit Planner for Seattle]. Enter two locations and get the directions using transit. The Google transit planner has been known [http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/soundoff/comment.asp?articleID=286592 to send folks all over town], so you might want to use the [http://tripplanner.metrokc.gov/cgi-bin/itin_page.pl?resptype=U Metro Trip planner] instead.

−

'''''News Flash!''''' As of November 8th, the [http://www.seattlemonorail.com/ Seattle Monorail] is up and running. The Monorail is a quick, easy way to get between downtown (Westlake Center, 5th & Pine) and the Seattle Center (Space Needle, Pacific Science Center, Experience Music Project). There will be a number of conference events happening at the Seatle Center (I've already seen announcements for receptions at the Space Needle and EMP) and for those who may be staying near the Seattle Center, it is a quick, easy way to get to the conference. Fare is $2 one-way.

+

'''''News Flash!''''' As of November 8th, the [http://www.seattlemonorail.com/ Seattle Monorail] is up and running. The Monorail is a quick, easy way to get between downtown (Westlake Center, 5th & Pine) and the Seattle Center (Space Needle, Pacific Science Center, Experience Music Project). There will be a number of conference events happening at the Seattle Center (I've already seen announcements for receptions at the Space Needle and EMP) and for those who may be staying near the Seattle Center, it is a quick, easy way to get to the conference. Fare is $2 one-way.

Contents

Public Transportation

Seattle offers numerous bus lines in the downtown area, near the convention center. For route details and hours, visit http://transit.metrokc.gov/. One-way fares on weekdays are $1.50 during "peak" hours (morning and evening rush) and $1.25 during non-peak hours. A vistor pass is available for $5 that allows unlimited rides for one day. These can be purchased online or at retail outlets in the Convention Center or the Rainier Square Shopping Center. See http://buypass.metrokc.gov/browse.cfm/2,67.html for online ordering.

A weekend day pass is available for $2.50 that allows unlimited rides for a day. This pass is available on all Metro buses.

The Ride Free Area extends from the north at Battery St. to S. Jackson St. on the south, and east at 6th Avenue to the waterfront on the west. Metro routes 116, 118 and 119 are not included in the Ride Free area.

There is an Easy Guide Map for Downtown Seattle Bus Service on the Metro Online site.

News Flash! As of November 8th, the Seattle Monorail is up and running. The Monorail is a quick, easy way to get between downtown (Westlake Center, 5th & Pine) and the Seattle Center (Space Needle, Pacific Science Center, Experience Music Project). There will be a number of conference events happening at the Seattle Center (I've already seen announcements for receptions at the Space Needle and EMP) and for those who may be staying near the Seattle Center, it is a quick, easy way to get to the conference. Fare is $2 one-way.

ALA Shuttle Bus

ALA does have a shuttle bus service it uses that starts on Friday to take members on specified routes from hotels back and forth to the Convention Center. Members have to wear their name badges to board the bus. Schedules for this shuttle will be available in hotels, in Cognotes, and in the Meeting Guide.

Taxis

Taxis are available in downtown Seattle, at the convention center and at most hotels. You may also request a taxi be called by a hotel or restaurant. Rates are: $2.50 Meter Drop (entering the taxi), $2.00 per Mile, 50¢ per minute Waiting Time and 50¢ per extra passenger over two, excluding minors.

Hello from Seattle!

I'm looking forward to seeing you in my adopted home town! Since I'm ever so happy to opine, I have some tips about Seattle and the ALA hotel options. Where to stay depends on your interests. If you have any questions, or anything you'd particularly like to see or do while you're here, just ask, and I'll cheerfully share whatever I know, or refer you to better sources.

Anything tall-ish will have a good view (if you can see it through the clouds, dark and rain). There are mountains on all sides of the city and water on the east and west (Puget Sound and Lake Washington) which makes for lovely views when weather allows. It is likely to be in the 40s-60s Fahrenheit, probably wet in the "drizzle all day and all night" sort of wet. The sun is up around 9am, down by about 4pm. Occasionally we get cold, clear, crisp winter days, and every now and then, snow and ice. Not every year, though. I'll give updates in early January.

In the past 10-or-so years, there has been something of an increase in 'nightlife' but it's relative. Seattle isn't Manhattan by any stretch of the imagination. There are lots of downtown 'night spots' (mostly pricey and full of 30-somethings), but most everything else rolls up fairly early.

Situated on a set of ancient coastal terraces and crossed by a bundle of north-south glacial moraines, Seattle goes uphill as you head east from the waterfront, and as you head south from Pike Street. Westlake Center is in something of a small "bowl", a plateau above the Sound. The freeway intersects the city at the next plateau, and it goes uphill from there, heading east. From Second Avenue eastward, and Union Street southward, the city goes uphill, slowly at first.
There is a large "Downtown Free Ride Area" for Metro buses, with signs prominent, and generally helpful drivers to guide you. There's good service to Capitol Hill (on the other side of the freeway, but sans capitol), where the key sights are the Asian Art Museum and Conservatory, both in Volunteer Park.

The entire city is non-smoking: indoors, or within 30 feet of a doorway or ventilation intake outdoors, so hotels and restaurants are safe for air quality if nothing else.

The most renowned areas of downtown are:

Pike Place Market (riotous old farmers' market with "flying salmon" and oodles of kitsch), which extends from University to Virginia along 1st Avenue.

Benaroya Hall for the Symphony (On Third between Seneca and University)

Seattle Art Museum (First and Seneca/University, is a tad full of itself, and in a remodel for the Downtown site. May still be closed in January. The Capitol Hill Volunteer Park location is open, and the park Conservatory is small but lovely, a reasonably easy bus ride from downtown for $1.25 off-peak.)

Pioneer Square (with an underground tour, shopping, galleries, kitsch and the ever-present Oriental Rug Sale/Closeout) is south enough that it isn't on the hotel locator map, but easy to reach and flat to prowl.

Experience Music Project - an architecturally peculiar 'museum' of Paul Allen's rock and roll collection, near Seattle Center. When architect Frank Gehry was interviewed at the opening, it went like this: (reporter) "Mr. Gehry, does the Experience Music Project building look like your original idea?" (Gehry: "Unfortunately, yes. I did that a long time ago.")

Seattle Center/Space Needle - if the weather is clear, it's well worth the fee to go to the top for a view. I haven't dined at the restaurant in years, but it was good the last time I went (and lousy the time before.) My visits are about 10-15 years apart.

Live Theater/Music: Seattle is a big theater and music town. Near the Convention Center are the Paramount and the Fifth Avenue Theaters, and two cinemas with lots of screens apiece; Jazz Alley, Kells Celtic music/restaurant. Opera House is at Seattle Center, along with several live theaters. Monorail may be working by then, for quick and easy hop to Seattle Center from Westlake Mall (across the street from the Westin).

Food: From the ridiculous to the sublime. Downtown is a diner's dream.

Hotels: For convenience, it is be best to stick with the properties on the ALA list, so here's my jaundiced perspective. Proximity to Convention Center: it goes like this, beginning with the closest:

Grand Hyatt is just across the street from the Center, between the Sheraton and the Center. I was there for a speaker recently, and it was lovely.

Sheraton is only a block away from the convention center. I've booked a room at the Sheraton, because I'm told it has an enclosed rooftop pool and deck, of which I intend to take full advantage.

Paramount is the next closest. The convention map is wrong-the Paramount is sited at the number where they list the Roosevelt, and vice versa. It's probably newest, looks good. On the flat, very near cinemas and vertical malls.

Roosevelt -classic old facility refurbished. Closest to Nordstrom

Red Lion (I couldn't picture it in my mind-so I looked online. It used to be a bank HQ, is very well located for messing about downtown)

Summerfield Suites (Not where its dot is-it's actually on Pike St. just across the freeway, in the L-shaped notch in the NE corner of the Convention center on the ALA map, might be a bit more comfy as a suite, just outside the free downtown bus zone)

Hotel Max might be really amusing. It's new, fairly close, flat walk.

Lap of Luxury:

The Fairmont Olympic is the Grand Old Dame of Seattle Hotels, right between shopping and financial districts

Smaller, and interesting:

Mayflower Park - charming, historic, independent, well-sited for shopping, Pike Place Market, not far, in flat part of town-can get to and from without major hills.

Hotel Monaco - I don't know it well, but the chain looks interesting, and the lounge is comfy.

Others:

Westin -is in the Nexus of downtown traffic and busses, at the bottom of a few connecting minor ridges. Close to Nordstrom and Macy's, but farther away from the convention center and other HQ properties than most of the others.

Anything South of University is in the core of the financial/legal section. Perfectly fine part of town, not particularly interesting, uphill from Convention Center, in free bus zone.

W Seattle -- Though I loathe the name, it looks interesting, is reasonably well located, just across the street from Seattle Public's big downtown library, Spring is also hillish, especially between second and fourth. Close to Symphony (Benaroya Hall) and Art museum (probably closed).

Renaissance Madison - used to be something else, is at the highest point of the downtown hill, and Madison is one of the steepest downhill streets toward the water (one-way westbound on the west side of the freeway).

Crowne Plaza - Used to be something else too. Probably fine, very close to Renaissance Madison with same qualities.

Adequate:

Sixth Ave Inn - not a great location, closest to the new jail/court and police precinct, near a lot of current construction as a quaint old 1950s-1970s business area is converted to high-rise condos and YuppieLand.

The one I'd avoid:

Days Inn - it's Spartan and surrounded by parking lots, somewhere between the missions and soup kitchens and the parks where the homeless hang out. It's also in the Bermuda Triangle of Buses (there aren't many), outside the free ride zone (not so bad, I suppose, because there aren't many to begin with), and a long trudge to anything but the Westin. It's quite close to the most recent former KCLS Service Center, and closer than any of the rest of the listings to Seattle Center. If you're fond of basketball (if the team is still in Seattle), you can enjoy the sights and sounds of gridlocked traffic when there are home games.

Tips for Wheelchair Users and the Mobility Impaired

Seattle (like San Francisco) is known as a city of hills (we like to think that's one of the reasons we're all in such good shape). The downtown area north of University (around the Convention Center and ALA hotels) is fairly flat, but you will have to negotiate some hills once you leave that area (particularly if you want to go down to the waterfront or up to Capitol Hill).

Metro has prepared a webpage for the mobility impaired to help you get around downtown and make more effective use of the bus system. Some tips include:

Look for accessible bus stops which are marked with the international access symbol

Many routes are served by 'kneeling' buses, so even if you're not in a wheelchair, but still have movement difficulties, you can ask the bus driver to kneel the bus so you can board

On steep hills, use the elevators in public buildings. This is a standard practice that most locals know about. For example, the downtown library is situated on a steep hill. Anyone can go in the 5th Avenue entrance and take the elevator or escalator to the 4th Avenue entrance. This is such a standard practice that Metro has actually put together an access map to assist people with mobility problems. This map not only shows the public buildings that can be used in this way, but also shows the standard pedestrian routes to get to certain parts of downtown.

Street Addresses

Seattle has one of the most confusing street numbering systems of any city in the country. Wikipedia has a complete (and rather mind-numbingly detailed) description of the system. If you want to take full advantage of this Wikipedia article, have a map of Seattle in front of you.

The directional for a Street is placed BEFORE the street name (NE 45th Street) but the directional for an Avenue is place AFTER the street name (8th Avenue NW)

Because of this naming convention, locals will often drop the street name and just refer to the number and directional. NE 45th Street becomes NE 45th. 8th Avenue NW becomes 8th NW. To the local, NE 35th and 35th NE are two very different streets.

When you write down addresses, it is important to always put the directional in its proper place and to write down "Avenue" "Street" etc.

Downtown

Visitors who stay downtown have a much easier time with addresses. Within the downtown area (bounded by Yesler on the south, Denny on the north and Interstate-5 on the east), there are no directionals. Because the downtown street grid follows the waterfront, it is not exactly on the compass points, but we like to pretend it is.

Avenues run parallel to the waterfront and are numbered from the waterfront (1st Ave, 2nd Ave, etc. ). 1st Ave should be the one closest to the waterfront but (depending on where you are downtown) there is at least one road (Alaskan Way) and sometimes two or three between the waterfront and 1st Ave.

Downtown streets (running perpendicular to the waterfront) are named. Between Yesler and Olive Way/Stewart St (Convention Center) you can very easily identify the general location of a street if you remember the mnemonic Jesus Christ Made Seattle Under Protest as beginning at Yesler and heading north, there are two streets beginning with each letter:

Olive Way/Stewart Ave

Protest Pine/Pike

Under Union/University

Seattle Seneca/Spring

Made Madison/Marion

Christ Columbia/Cherry

Jesus James/Jefferson

Yesler

For downtown addresses, Yesler is the 00 block for avenues and street addresses are numbered from the waterfront, corresponding to the numbered avenues (so 200 Pike Street is the corner of Pike & 2nd Ave).

Outside of Downtown

Street numbering outside of downtown is not on a single grid, but instead, on several grids which share common boundaries. Any decent city road map will have an overlay of the directionals on it so you can identify what the proper directional is for a particular location. There are some general guidelines (any address north of the Ship Canal will be designated N, NE, NW; any address each of I-5 will be designated E, NE, SE) but even these general guidelines have glaring exceptions (there is no SE, there are N streets south of the Ship Canal, etc.) that it's best to rely on a good map or online mapping service.